Senate postpones hearing on intelligence nominee over nomination dispute

A confirmation hearing scheduled for Wednesday for the nominee to head the Office of the Director of National Intelligence was postponed following an announcement that tied the proceeding to a separate nomination process. The announcement stated that the hearing would remain canceled until the Senate acts on the nomination for U.S. attorney in the Southern District of New York.

An acting director will continue leading the office in the interim.

m. Wednesday. Lawmakers from both parties had discussed fast-tracking the confirmation to address the lapse of Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act. Democrats had conditioned their support for renewing the surveillance authority on changes to the acting director’s role.

The office was established after the September 11 attacks and oversees 18 intelligence agencies.

Concerns raised by senators Some Democratic senators said their votes would depend on the nominee’s performance at the hearing. Questions were expected about oversight of document releases and recent public comments on an election. Republicans had aimed to complete confirmation by Thursday to limit the acting director’s time in the role.

One Republican senator noted the risks of operating without renewed surveillance authority during major events.

“I don’t want to take Jay Clayton away from the great job he is doing until Jamie is in place.”